Imagine the sheer stone walls of a thousand-foot-high canyon glistening
with ancient rock. The walls quickly vanish above a green liquid stretch of
river that flows through the canyon. A lone kayak floating through this immense
canyon is the only intrusion.
At the bend, the kayaker paddles over to a sandbar, gets out, unloads and
preps his photo gear. Then he sits cross-legged to wait for the paddlers upriver
to slide into his frame, into the golden light of afternoon. At that moment,
Chris Noble knows it's going to be a great shoot.
Noble's work has appeared in Backpacker, Skiing, Sierra and Powder.
He's fashioned a career out of capturing solitary athletes competing
against nature -- about as close to a modern version of a wilderness man as
you can get. Not content to sit back and take pictures, he lives through the
experiences himself.
Noble works on land or water and his stunning, vibrant pictures evoke the
power and drama of the world's wild places.
"What's important to me is the interaction of humanity with landscape,"
he says. "There are lots of landscapists who do beautiful work, but I've
always had more interest in putting a human figure in there, even if it's
sometimes quite small."
He hopes that when people look at his pictures, they'll have the desire
to visit their own wild places. "I get enjoyment by giving people my experience
vicariously. If I can get them to understand the joys of participation in
nature -- without harm to the environment -- then I'm happy," says Noble.
Another sports photographer with a love for adventure is Phillip Chin.
A self-proclaimed photographer at large, Chin loves spontaneity and adventure.
He travels across North America for his photographic assignments.
"I enjoy photographing people. I like the interaction between myself and
the subject. I like pulling emotions out of people. I consider what I do art.
I create images with light, shape, texture and feelings. I'm an individual
who needs to see results immediately. That is why I enjoy the variety that
comes with my work."
The uncertainty of being a freelancer is a big part of the adventuresome
spirit found in most sports photographers. "You never know what you could
be doing, but you live one day at a time. My whole career has been at the
right place, at the right time and seizing the moment," says Chin.
Noble has become successful creating unique nature shots in commercial
advertising. Lucrative assignments for Nike, North Face, Patagonia, Du Pont,
Gore-Tex and Gatorade have taken him away from quality time in
the wilderness.
"I'm passionate now about being as creative as possible," he says.
"And all this work is driving me back to spending as much quality time in
nature as possible in the future. The important message I want people to get
from my work is simple: we all have a stake in the wilderness. If I can show
them how to do that with self-powered sports, then I'm happy."
Lori Adamski-Peek is a veteran photographer for Newsweek. Peek is one of
the few women in a field dominated by men. This fact doesn't deter her:
the challenge invigorates her and keeps her going. Adamski-Peek recalls the
place female athletes held at the 1996 Summer Olympic Games.
"Atlanta will be remembered as the time we saw more women athletes than
ever in front of the camera. But it wasn't the dawn of a great new era
for women behind the camera. I was at the mountain-biking race, where there
were probably 200 photographers. I was the only woman."
Adamski-Peek advises women considering sports photography to take a close
look at themselves to make sure they can handle the stress and isolation.
Her whole view of life tells you what kind of woman will succeed.
"It's not uncommon to be working two to three days without sleep.
You do whatever it takes to get the job done. I consider myself a student
in life -- always learning. My motto is: life is too short. Just do it."